The Establishment and Management of Nature Reserves: Crucial Support for the Recovery of the Yangtze Finless Porpoise Population

The Yangtze finless porpoise (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis asiaeorientalis) is distributed in the main stream of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, as well as in Dongting and Poyang lakes. Currently, the most crucial conservation approach involves the establishment and management of both in-situ and ex-situ nature reserves. Since the 1990s, seven nature reserves have been established in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, covering nearly one-third of its main stream. Additionally, two nature reserves, one in the Dongting Lake and another in the Poyang Lake, have been set up; and three ex-situ nature reserves have been established in three oxbows respectively in Hunan, Hubei, and Anhui provinces. Through measures such as improving the ecological environment quality within the reserves, regulating human activities, and conducting continuous monitoring, the finless porpoise population showed a slight increase in 2022 for the first time. The ex-situ population has continued to grow, with four individuals being released back into the main stream of the Yangtze River after undergoing reintroduction training in 2023. Based on the population development lasting for over three decades, and predictions of future ecological changes, orderly establishment and scientific management of nature reserves have played a key role in and will remain an important basis for the sustaining growth of the finless porpoise population.